


Aubade

by theprettynerdie



Series: Thedas University [1]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Gen, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-05-12
Updated: 2015-05-12
Packaged: 2018-03-30 04:45:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 576
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3923437
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theprettynerdie/pseuds/theprettynerdie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eighteen year old Siobhan Trevelyan applied to an out-of-state college to escape the corruption of her family's political life in Ostwick. There, she's drawn to Cullen Rutherford, an ex-military student with a dark secret, as she navigates her freshman year at Thedas University.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Aubade

**Author's Note:**

> This fic precedes "One Too Many" chronologically, and details the main events of Siobhan Trevelyan's freshman year at Thedas University. Since I don't have the patience to write this as a longform fic, I'm setting this up as a series of oneshots that fit into a larger narrative. Meaanwhile, a timeline of events that will eventually explain where each chapter fits within the story is in the works.
> 
> aliencereal got me hooked on the idea of a college AU with a bunch of her high school/university!Thedas fics, so she's definitely responsible for this headcanon gone wild.

_This is it._ She takes a deep breath to keep herself from hyperventilating as the overpacked car drives onto campus, but she can already feel her excitement and panic bubbling to the surface, nearly overwhelming her. She leans back and closes her eyes, trying to calm herself over the sound of her parents and brother chattering away.

 

That doesn’t last long. Her father parks the car in one of the few remaining spots near her building, turns around in his seat to look at her, and says “Well, it’s official. You’re a freshman.”

 

Siobhan Trevelyan steps out of the car and looks up at Loghain Mac Tir Hall, her heart still fluttering madly. Her face breaks into a grin.

 

_I’m here. Finally. This is it._

 

* * *

 

The years at Ostwick High School had been four years of virtual isolation. Rich Marchers almost always sent their children to private schools, and the Trevelyans had been no exception. Growing up in an influential, politically-connected family meant that Siobhan lived in luxury, complete with destination vacations, expensive clothes and toys, and dinner parties attended by various politicians, socialites, and the occasional celebrity.

 

She’d grown to hate it: the Chantry Traditionalist causes her family supported, being paraded about as an example of good breeding, living her life for her family’s sake and never for herself. Most of her fellow students in high school came from similar backgrounds, the ones with Chantry-aligned dynasties they were expected to uphold; she’d ended up feeling ostracized and lonely for four long years. It was partly the fear of repeating the experience again at Ostwick College - her parents’ and two older brothers’ alma mater - that led her to apply to as many out-of-state universities as she could. Being accepted into Thedas University, one of the most prestigious private colleges in the country, had been an utter blessing; Siobhan’s parents really couldn’t even consider trying to talk her out of going there when it was ranked a full thirty-five spots higher than Ostwick College in the rankings for national schools.

 

She can hardly wait to see the back of her father’s Mercedes so she can, for the first time, really begin to live for herself.

 

First though, there is the tedious process of moving in. It means heavy lifting, gathering her key and welcome materials while her mother throws pointed questions about organic and low calorie options available in the dining halls at the two students working behind the front desk, more heavy lifting and arguing about how to arrange the furniture, and dealing with her fifteen-year-old brother when he inexplicably bursts into tears in the middle of her new dorm room and cries into her shoulder.

 

Her parents’ busy schedule means that they can’t afford to stay long after they finish setting up the room, not unless they want to miss the fundraiser they paid ten thousand dollars per plate to attend. As much as Siobhan still loves them, she’s seen how they have become more and more politically radical, dangerously so, to the point where she began to fear being _disowned_ if anyone in the house realized the extent of her dedication to liberal causes.

 

She has seen such profound corruption in just the past few years alone, and such genuine evil, that her adopted method for navigating society life in Ostwick — bottling up her outrage and remaining silent — was steadily becoming difficult to maintain. 

 

Another good reason for her to be at Thedas University.

 


End file.
